2023, M (Supernatural themes and suicide scenes), 100 mins
Available on DVD and Digital Platforms from November 13, 2024
Stars Elizabeth Hurley, Mia Jenkins, Jack Stewart and Tara Fitzgerald
Directed by Anthony Waller
The Pied Piper of Hamelin is a famous fable that has arguably fallen out of the public consciousness in recent decades, but the creepy undertones of the story have enormous potential to be repurposed for a horror movie. Piper revives the legend to solid effect, and tries hard to evoke an unsettling mood throughout, even if it doesn’t quite work overall.
Co-writer, co-composer and director Anthony Waller, the filmmaker behind the underrated 1995 thriller Mute Witness, has crafted a good-looking movie that improves greatly after a somewhat rushed and chaotic opening sequence, where we catch our first glimpse of an evil Pied Piper and his rat minions, which leads to a tragic event in a hospital.
We’re then introduced to the main characters of the story: single mum Liz (Elizabeth Hurley) and her daughter Amy (Mia Jenkins), new arrivals in the sleepy town of Hamelin, Germany, where talk of the famous legend is ever-present.
But it’s not long before a series of unsettling events prompt Liz to start investigating the town’s sordid history, while Amy settles in at school and strikes up a romance with handsome local boy Luca (Jack Stewart), who knows more about the town’s history than he is letting on.
It turns out a dark deed in Liz’s past may have something to do with her and Amy being targeted by the Piper, and she sets out to do all she can to save their lives, with the help of some locals who know what havoc the supernatural Piper could unleash on the town and its residents.
There is some good lore and world building in Waller and co-writer Duncan Kennedy’s script, with some picturesque locations adding to the overall mood. There is a genuine attempt to harken back to the classy and atmospheric type of horror that was prevalent in the 1970s, such as Don’t Look Now and The Wicker Man, with modern touches of course such as CGI effects and flashy editing.
The imagery of a rampaging horde of rats is always a striking visual, and used to good effect here, and the Piper himself is menacing and has a great look for a horror villain, but Piper perhaps takes a little bit too long to lay out its bag of tricks and the conclusion feels slightly rushed as a result.
Still, there is a lot to like in Piper, the acting is solid throughout, the religious overtones are well incorporated and the music score by director Waller and Wilbert Hirsch is effective. The repeated use of a choral chant signifying the impending approach of the Piper is especially effective.
Overall, Piper doesn’t quite have the power to put viewers under the spell as effectively as some other films in this genre, but it does a solid job of creating an eerie tale from the bones of an enduring legend.
More information via imdb.com/title/tt13580484/
TINSEL and TAP SHOES 